Wizarding world (Scopatore)
The wizarding world, known alternatively as the magical community, is the society where witches and wizards live and interact completely separate from Muggle, or non-wizarding, society. The two "worlds" are kept apart through the use of charms, spells and all-around secrecy. Officially, wizards are forbidden to reveal anything about magic or the wizarding world to anybody who is non-magical, however there are several exceptions to the rule, such as when a Muggle family has a Muggle-born child and the parents are informed about the existence of the magic. Each country has a form of wizarding government that oversees affairs relating to magical society within their territory, typically in the form of a Ministry of Magic or Council of Magic. The International Confederation of Wizards is an international organization compiled of all magical governments of the world. Government The governments of the magical populace in the world's countries are their central authority, bureaucracy and law enforcement. These governments come in many forms, typically they are known as Ministries or Councils of Magic and headed by a Minister for Magic. There are a few exceptions, such as the Magical Congress of the United States of America, led by a President, and the Magical Directorate of Ukraine, led by a Hetman. Much like the Muggle world, governments in the wizarding world come in all forms of democracy; in the Canadian Ministry of Magic, the Premier is elected by general vote of the wizarding populace, while in the British Ministry of Magic and Ukrainian Magical Directorate, their heads of state are appointed by an unelected government body, which are the Wizengamot and Central Council in Britain and Ukraine respectively. Geography The wizarding world differs from the Muggle world in many ways, with geography being one of the biggest differences between the two. Great Britain In Great Britain, the British Ministry of Magic exerts authority over the entirety of the British Isles; England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the crown dependencies, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. Much like the Muggle world, the various states have their own athletic associations, meaning England, Scotland, Ireland, etc. have their own Quidditch teams, as opposed to a unified British Quidditch team. Italy When Muggle Italy unified, the League of Italian Wizards began to push for the unification of the various magical governments into a single Italian Ministry of Magic. The only state to resist this was the Southern Italians, then falling under the Council of Magic of the Two Sicilies. A vicious civil war wracked wizarding Italy which dragged on for years until the northerners finally relented and ceased trying to force the southerners into a unified government. Much like Muggle Italy, tension between northerners and southerners are high, however it is amplified by the fact that magical Italy is politically divided between the two sides of the peninsula. Romania The Romanian Ministry of Magic's authority corresponds to Muggle Romania and Moldova. The region of Transylvania, however, is an independent wizarding government and a homeland of sorts for vampires. Society Women Women and women's rights in the wizarding world seem backwards at first glance, however if one has a deep understanding of wizarding culture they will find that it is not so. Women enjoy the same rights as men, though witches, especially pure-blooded ones, tend to stick to their traditional gender role as caretakers and housewives not because that is what is expected of them, but that is what they want to do. A typical witch has more of an interest in raising a family than they do pursuing a career. This is the main reason that Muggle-born and Muggle-raised witches' cries for women's rights in the wizarding world fall on deaf ears. Although witches typically opt to raise a family, it is not uncommon to find witches who study for their chosen career path, put it aside to focus on a family life, and resume their career trek after her youngest child begins school. This is possible because of wizards' long lifespans and the fact that magical schools are all boarding schools. Polygamy within the wizarding world is a fully legal but infrequent practice. Historically, a wizard would take another wife if he was an heir to more than one house, producing an heir for a certain house with a certain wife. However, most wizards married only one woman, but some would have mistresses, which was a fully accepted practice in some places even today. Seeing a wizard married to more than one witch is not terribly rare, though it is an uncommon practice and usually centered around the high-class pure-blood section of society. Prejudices Prejudices held by wizards in the wizarding world are different than those held by Muggles in their world. The most common prejudice faced by wizards is the ability to perform magic. As such, Muggles are not seen as below wizards by some because they are Muggles, but because they cannot perform magic like they can. However, as evident by the many half-bloods in the wizarding world, this prejudice is held by only a minority of wizards. "Racism" applies to prejudice held by entirely different species rather than ethnicities; the wizarding world as a whole is typically colour-blind with regards to issues of ethnicity. Racists within the wizarding world tend to hold prejudice to other species such as Centaurs, Goblins and even Veela. Homosexuality is not an illegal practice in the wizarding world, though it is frowned upon by many not because of the act of being with another man, but the fact that homosexual wizards cannot not produce children to bolster the already small wizarding population. Education An untrained wizard child may perform random bursts of magic intuitively when distressed or excited. To hone a wizard's magic into a controlled and usable skill required years of education. All over the wizarding world, there are schools that train young witches and wizards in the arts of magic. Although there are dozens of schools all over the world and hundreds have existed historically, the most famous and most prestigious of these schools are the "Big Eleven", a conglomerate of the best magical schools on the globe. Big Eleven Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which is located in the highlands of Scotland, is the institution that educates the young witches and wizards of the United Kingdom and Ireland. Students may enroll at the age of eleven and are eligible for seven years of magical training in a wide variety of subjects. After a student graduates from Hogwarts, they are considered mature and capable members of society and are expected to begin their work lives immediately afterwards, however professions such as an Auror require additional training. Attendance to the school is eligible to any British citizen able to practice magic. In fact, the Ministry uses a magical quill that automatically writes down the names of every child born with magical capabilities. This book is used ten years afterwards to send that child a letter explaining that they've been accepted into Hogwarts. New Alexandria School of Enlightenment The New Alexandria School of Enlightenment is located in an Egyptian oasis and educates students from a host of different countries, including but not limited to Egypt, Greece, Turkey, Israel and Southern Italy.Category:Harry Potter Universe (Scopatore)